For centuries wooden logs from felled trees have been utilized in the construction of the walls of buildings. Because of the natural insulative properties of wood and because of the aesthetically pleasing rustic appearance logs provide, logs have in recent years been increasingly used in building construction, particularly homes. According to contemporary improvements developed in the art of log building construction, log units of uniform shape and dimensions produced by the controlled machining of wooden logs are conventionally used and provide significant advantages over the relatively primitive method of construction using felled and delimbed trees.
Characteristically, the manufacturers of such machined log units market the log units in unassembled lots of individual log units for transportation to a construction site and assembling thereat. As is conventional, the assembling of individual log units ordinarily involves the vertical stacking thereof, most manufacturers machining their log units in such a manner as to facilitate stacking arrangement thereof. To provide structural integrity to walls constructed of stacked log units, the log units are rigidly affixed to one another during the construction process, normally by driving spikes, lag bolts, or the like through each log unit into the previously stacked log unit following the stacking thereof on such previously stacked log units, and, because the log units are usually formed of green wood, it is necessary that a sufficient number of spikes be used at relatively small spacings along the lengths of the stacked log units to prevent warping, bowing or buckling of the log units which can deleteriously affect both the structural integrity and appearance of the building and negate the effectiveness of the log units as insulation. Experience has shown, however, that the purchasers and assemblers of log unit packages often do not follow recommended instructions concerning the affixation of log units in this manner, and significant problems have arisen in the log building industry as a result since the purchasers of the log unit packages typically place the blame on the manufacturer when the log units in the building begin to warp, bow or buckle as a result of such improper assembly.
It will also be understood that the conventional method of log building construction of stacking and affixing individual log units one-by-one is a labor intensive operation, and accordingly, is costly. As a result, the cost of the conventional practice of initially constructing the exterior shell in the above manner and thereafter affixing interiorly thereto studs, additional insulation and wallboard is often prohibitive.
The present invention provides a solution to the abovedescribed problems in providing a prefabricated wall unit for log building construction and a method of economically constructing such wall units complete with studs and supplemental insulation at the log unit manufacturing facility whereby the proper fabrication of the walls of log buildings can be controlled by the manufacturer without increasing the total cost to the purchaser of log building construction.